...Preferential treatment? Tae-Gyun Kim arrived in Japan with earrings on both ears. The club has already instituted rules banning dyed hair, facial hair, and earrings. Seems foreign players won't be required to follow these rules.

Based on some of the headlines and articles that have been coming out about Kim's arrival, it would seem the media is building him up as something of a rebel -- almost every article I've read mentions his pierced ears and a few mentions his sunglasses and the fact that he wasn't wearing a tie. Oh boy.

Chunichi Dragons

...Dionys Cesar's goal for the 2010 season is to hit .300 and steal 40 bases. He won the MVP in the Mexican League last season and would like to win one in the NPB this season as well.

Hanshin Tigers

...Veteran Mitsunobu Takahashiwas one of the first players to arrive at Koshien Stadium for practice on Tuesday. The Stadium had been closed for the New Year holiday.

...Club president Nobuo Minami wants members in his front office to stop relying on e-mail so much. He wants people to be more hands.

...The Tigers still need to offer contracts to 5 more players (Kanemoto, Fujikawa, Toritani, Shimoyanagi, and Kubo). They plan to begin the process sometime early next week. Because of the late timing, there's a good chance some, or all five, will start Spring camp without contracts.

Hiroshima Carp

...Shigenobu Shimatook off for Ishigakijima on Tuesday for training. He has already lost about 7kg during the off-season and would like to start Spring camp under 100kg if possible (he's currently around 100kg).

...Masataka Nashida feel's he will be able to determine whether or not Sho Nakata is ready for Ichi-gun on the first day of Spring camp. The Fighters have left Nakata to train on his own this off-season to see how he handles the responsibility of preparing his body for the new season.

...A Samurai Japan roster of pro players might be taking part in the 2010 Asian Games in November. The amateur organizations feel they won't be able to put a together team because the Asian Games happen to take place at around the same time as the Meiji Jingu and Independent League Tournaments.